39: Chapter 39 He got off too easy!

"It's over. This year, the starting requirement is actually Condensing Qi Stage 5! Didn't the County Exam only require the Qi Condensation Realm in previous years?!"

"Why is the threshold suddenly so high this year? This is too harsh!"

"I'm only at Condensing Qi Stage 4. How could this be..."

"It's probably because of this year's Five Prefectures Joint Examination that they raised the selection standards. After all, if the selected students' cultivations are too poor, the County Academy Director would lose face!"

In Martial Arts Arena No. 1, following the announcement by Instructor Fan Suiyun, waves of gasps and sighs erupted from the crowd. Many students were thrown into utter chaos, looking utterly devastated.

Shen Qinglan also frowned slightly and said softly to Chen An, "This year's entry threshold is much higher than in previous years. It seems the Prefecture City intends to select only the elite and weed out a large number of students with mediocre Aptitude."

"But this is also fine. Anyway, Elder Yue has already secured a special admission spot for you at the Prefectural Academy. Even if you're eliminated, so be it. This way, you won't have to go up on the arena," Shen Qinglan added with a smile.

Hearing Shen Qinglan's words, Chen An couldn't help but smile faintly. He didn't say much and simply nodded.

Not far away, Liu Qingyun was utterly dumbfounded upon hearing the rules.

He hadn't expected the rules of this County Exam to change like this, and his father, the chief Instructor of Geng Class, didn't even know about it.

Did he really not know, or was he deliberately keeping it from him?!

Also, did Head Elder Wei Linyuan, the Elder of Academy Affairs, really just wander nearby by chance yesterday before intervening in this matter?!

Thinking of this, Liu Qingyun couldn't help but shudder!

Immediately after, Liu Qingyun's gaze drifted toward Chen An not far away, a look of venom and resentment flashing in his eyes.

"Damn it, he got off too cheap!"

Originally, Liu Qingyun had planned to pretend to accidentally kill Chen An if they met on the arena.

But this County Exam had changed so that the first round tested cultivation. With Chen An's Condensing Qi Stage 2 cultivation, he would be eliminated before even passing the first round.

Then his scheme would fall through!

"Hmph, I'll let you live a little longer. Once the County Exam is over and I get into the Prefectural Academy, that will be the day you die!" Liu Qingyun snorted coldly in his heart.

"Alright, silence!"

On the high platform, Instructor Fan Suiyun barked softly, and a sharp, mountain-like pressure suddenly erupted from his body, instantly enveloping all the examinees present.

The majestic Aura made everyone's hearts tremble, and the entire venue instantly fell dead silent, so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. No one dared to make a scene or act out anymore.

"Everyone, line up immediately and proceed to the mystic light stele to test your cultivation in turn!"

"Anyone who dares to cause trouble, make noise in public, or disrupt the exam order will be expelled from the academy on the spot and never readmitted!"

"Begin!!!"

As Instructor Fan Suiyun's voice fell, all the County Academy students silently split into five lines under the guidance of the Instructors and came before the mystic light steles.

"Circulate your True Qi and slap your palm onto the silver-white area of the mystic light stele!"

An Instructor of the County Academy stood beside each mystic light stele, patiently guiding the students who stepped forward and teaching them how to channel their True Qi to activate the stele.

"Zhao Wenyuan!"

An Instructor called out the name of the first examinee in a loud voice.

The youth named Zhao Wenyuan was nervous. He stepped forward trembling, slowly circulating the True Qi in his body according to the method taught by the Instructor, and injected it into the mystic light stele.

Buzz—!!

A low hum suddenly sounded, and a light green halo instantly rippled across the surface of the mystic light stele. Right after that, three markings on the lowest level of the mystic light stele lit up.

The Instructor glanced at the stele and immediately announced in a deep voice, "Zhao Wenyuan, Qi Condensation Realm Stage 3, fail!"

The roll call continued!

"Cheng Lishan, Qi Condensation Realm Stage 5, pass!"

"Yuan Zongming, Qi Condensation Realm Stage 4, fail!"

Standing near the back of the third line, Chen An quietly watched the rounds of testing ahead. His eyes flickered slightly as he nodded to himself.

"So that's how it is. The green light corresponds to the Qi Condensation Realm, and the markings on the stele are the standard for dividing the minor stages of cultivation!"

...

"Director Fan, is it a bit too harsh to eliminate students below Condensing Qi Stage 5 in the very first round of this County Exam?!"

On the high platform, County Magistrate Zhang Xuanming watched the eliminated students weeping bitterly below. His eyes flickered as he said,

"The path of martial arts has never been about judging superiority solely by cultivation!"

"Some students have outstanding skeletal structures and make rapid progress in their cultivation. However, there are also many students who are naturally gifted in comprehension, gaining extremely deep insights into Martial Skills and Cultivation Techniques, and they might possess the ability to fight those of a higher stage. Judging everything by cultivation like this might end up burying quite a few talents."

"The County Magistrate is absolutely correct!"

Hearing Zhang Xuanming's words, Fan Suiyun first cupped his hands, then looked down at the examinees below, and said slowly, "In this world, there are indeed those with ordinary skeletal structures but superb comprehension who can fight above their stage."

"However, no matter how high one's comprehension is or how deeply they master Martial Skills, without the support of a cultivation Realm, they might still be able to deal with enemies of the same stage, but if they face the suppression of a higher Realm, it is basically impossible to turn the tables!"

"Furthermore, this Martial Examination is extraordinary. The selected students will not only compete on the same stage with students from the thirty-six counties of Chengtian Prefecture in the future, but also contend with the prodigies from the four prefectures of Qingyuan, Wan'an, Changgeng, and Zhaoming!"

"The four prefectures are teeming with talent, and prodigies emerge in large numbers!"

"If we relax the threshold and admit a group of people with low cultivation, it might seem like we cherish talent, but in reality, it would leave them vulnerable and easily defeated in future competitions with other counties and prefectures. This would not only disgrace our Wurong County but also ruin their own martial arts prospects."

"County Magistrate, this old man agrees with Director Fan's approach!"

At this moment, Ancestor Zhou Tong of the Zhou Family, who was sitting nearby wearing a gray robe, chimed in, "Cultivation is the Foundation of martial arts. Without cultivation, what use is it no matter how strong your Martial Skills are?!"

"Take this old man for example. As a Acquired Realm Martial Artist, even if someone has mastered their Martial Skills to perfection, so what? This old man can slap them to death with a single palm!"

Hearing Zhou Tong's somewhat crude analogy, Zhang Xuanming's eyes flashed with a hint of displeasure. However, he did not say anything more, nodding slightly as he turned his gaze back to the ongoing tests.

...

"Cai De'an, Condensing Qi Stage 7, pass!"

"Deng Mingyuan, Condensing Qi Stage 5, pass!"

The testing continued!

"Liu Qingyun!"

Soon, it was Liu Qingyun's turn in the second line.

"Shen Qinglan!!!"

Coincidentally, it was just Shen Qinglan's turn in the third line!

Liu Qingyun glanced at Chen An, walked forward with a face full of confidence, and arrived before the mystic light stele. He then took a deep breath and slapped his palm onto the mystic light stele.

*Bang!!!*

With a dull thud, Liu Qingyun's palm struck the mystic light stele solidly.

The next moment, the entire mystic light stele suddenly burst with a green halo, and a total of nine markings lit up...